Tag: Covid-19

No Large Crowd on the Beach

John Draper

This weekend was intended as a test of whether a fence was needed to close the Victoria Park Beach.  It’s too early for hot weather but the sun was out and being on the beach was pleasant – at least when I visited around 1:10 pm on Saturday.  There were not the hundreds that were reported on an earlier warm weekend and most – but not all – were following the rules.  Most groups appeared to be families although one group of young people that I saw were obviously not family.  Most were just walking through but some were letting children play in the sand or having a picnic.  When I arrived, two officers were leaving – one regular and… Read complete articleNo Large Crowd on the Beach

Farmers Market Hopes to Open May 16

John Draper

But “open” means something different than previously – the idea is that they will simply be there to provide pickup of orders made online – the Town calls it an “E-Commerce/Curb Side Pickup Service Delivery Model”.  Only food vendors will be allowed and a number of other restrictions will be required – see below.  The details will be presented to council at their Committee of the Whole (C.O.W.) meeting on Monday May 11.  Any resolution passed requires ratification at a regular Council meeting and the next one scheduled is on May 19 – after the Victoria Day weekend.  So to expedite approval, immediately after the COW meeting on Monday, a special meeting has been called to pass the required by-law…. Read complete articleFarmers Market Hopes to Open May 16

Update from Northumberland Hills Hospital

John Draper

Northumberland has had relatively few cases of the Covid-19 virus so we can either call ourselves lucky or we are doing a good job – or more likely both.  The CEO of the local Hospital, Linda Davis, reports on what they are doing in their May newsletter which many would be getting – forgive me if this is repetitious. Linda says that NHH continues to provide essential services and asks that if “you or someone you care for needs emergency care, please do not postpone your visit. Your NHH team stands ready to get you the care you need with all the necessary precautions in place to keep you and your loved ones safe.” She reports on the steps that… Read complete articleUpdate from Northumberland Hills Hospital

Now we have a Dumping Problem

John Draper

The County’s Dumps (now called Community Recycling Centres or CRC’s) have been closed for a while and selfish residents have taken to dumping their garbage in Parks, streets and alleys. The good news is that effective next week, the CRCs will reopen although they will have restrictions.  The Town of Cobourg issued a notice yesterday reminding residents that “Northumberland County and Town of Cobourg Bylaw Enforcement Officers and the Cobourg Police Service will be fining anyone caught illegally dumping. Common areas for dumping will be monitored on a regular basis. Illegal dumpers can face a minimum fine of $105 or a maximum fine of $5,000.”  Downtown store owners complained during their recent meeting that there was a lot of illegal… Read complete articleNow we have a Dumping Problem

Is Cannabis Factory leaving Cobourg?

John Draper

In these days of factories shutting down, it’s hard to know if something is temporary or permanent – and it doesn’t help if contact people are unreachable or don’t have answers.  But we have two facts: 1) The operators of the Cannabis operation at 520 William street announced on March 23 that they are stopping production at their plant because of Covid-19 restrictions. Less noticed but more importantly, around the same time (the broker didn’t remember exactly when), 2) the entire plant was put up for sale for $19.9M.  If their plant is up for sale, then the idea that all their staff is “furloughed” is questionable.  How can they return to work if their building has been sold?  So… Read complete articleIs Cannabis Factory leaving Cobourg?

Update on Provincial Covid-19 Actions

John Draper

MPP David Piccini today provided a number of updates of actions by the Ford Government that impact Cobourg residents.  They include an upgrade to Emergency Child care, changes to the availability of campgrounds (like Cobourg’s Trailer Park), clarification on allowed construction projects, rules on camping on Crown land and fishing (important at Cobourg/Factory creek and the Ganaraska river), help in hiring farm workers and more. Below are more details on each of these plus links to the source and/or expanded information. Emergency Child Care A plan to provide free Child Care to front-line workers was setup a few weeks ago but the list of eligible workers has now been expanded.  See the full list of those eligible and make an… Read complete articleUpdate on Provincial Covid-19 Actions

Farmers Honour HealthCare Workers

John Draper

It’s easy to forget that Cobourg is in the middle of farming country but we cannot forget about the Covid-19 crisis.  Something must be working here (in Northumberland) because we have relatively few cases and no deaths.  But we know that the healthcare workers at the Hospital (NHH) are working hard and these two things came together on Saturday – local farmers paraded their tractors to honour healthcare workers.  At around 1:00 pm, a long line of tractors plus some other vehicles drove down Burnham, along De Palma  and in front of the Hospital, down Strathy, East along Elgin past the Golden Plough then back up Burnham.  It was organized by the Northumberland Federation of Agriculture (NFA) who represent over… Read complete articleFarmers Honour HealthCare Workers

A Base Camp at Trailer Park

John Draper

In a new press release today, the Town of Cobourg clarified the usage of the trailers at the Trailer park.  A better description of their usage would be a “relief base camp for first responders and frontline medical workers”.  They would be used by frontline workers who are in need of respite and/or self-isolation from possible exposure to COVID-19.  Shannon Murphy, Emergency Planner for the Town of Cobourg explains that “the prevalence of fatigue in frontline medical staff and first responders is a major issue.  The base camp will be focused on promoting self-care and rest, and for those who need to self-isolate due to potential exposure.” Although the trailers were provided by Owasco (see earlier Post), there are also… Read complete articleA Base Camp at Trailer Park